1928 Cast Brass Medal 1783 Nova Constellatio Mark 1st National Bank Philadelphia
Description: A 1928 Cast Brass uniface medal; one of 36 medals representing replicas of early American coins used in banking. These replicas were displayed at the central office of the First National Bank of Philadelphia, Charter No. 1, located at 1500 Walnut Street on September 4, 1928. The obverse of the medal has a crude representation of the reverse of the Nova Constellatio Pattern 1783 (Mark) "1000" Silver coin. The design shows the letters U.S with the number 1000 below it within a wreath. There are also the legend” LIBERTAS.JUSTITIA.1783” along the edge surrounding the wreath. The medal is thick and has a plain edge. The reverse is blank having the number 3 engraved in it, possibly indicating the position of the medal in the display. The medal is 63 mm in diameter and weighs 180 grams. The medal is possibly a unique strike made for the display at the time. I would grade the medal as Extremely Fine to About Uncirculated. A great looking and very interesting rare medal to add to your collection. Please carefully review the photos presented as they are part and parcel of our description.
Date: 1928.
Origin: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Artist: Unknown.
Weight and Size: The medal weighs ~180 grams, is ~63 millimeters in diameter, and ~8 millimeters thick at the edge.
References: See pages 83 of the Official Red Book 76th Edition of 2023 for description and image of the actual Nova Constellatio Patterns.
Maker: Unknown.
Marks: Unmarked.
Condition: The medal is in extremely fine to about uncirculated condition. The medal has all its details well preserved with minimum wear to the highest points. It does have some scratches and minor dings to the surface. The medal also shows some casting defects here and there but these are original to the making and do not interfere with the quality or beauty of the piece. Finally, the medal appears to have been coated with a transparent coating, which gives it some reddish coloring on the obverse. Be that as it may, this is a nice-looking medal that would make a nice addition to your collection of old colonial related coins or tokens. Please view photos for additional condition information and to appreciate the beauty of the piece.
